Listening to speech in an auditorium

This is a well-known and well-documented issue. Listening over long distances is difficult due to the harmonics of the space and and background noise. The answer is to get a direct link to the speakers microphone and many public venues have the equipment to do this.

This is true for virtually everyone who wears . Become aware of the two main systems for overcoming the problem, “” and listening systems. Both mean that the producers have put in a system that you can link to. You can read more online or on this Forum. And your hearing aids will have to have added gadgetry to use the systems. There’s plenty of info about all this out there, but you need to learn about it.

finovox Ireland

@wbckr2007 said:

Resound Omnia

I would have thought the Omnia would cope well in this scenario that you were in. Personally I would keep working with the audiologist to fine tune the aid to improve the situation. Unfortunately everyone struggles with this issue but you may be able to get that 50% of words up to 70 or 80%.

Raudrive

Texas Hill Country

@wbckr2007 said:

.I would describe my hearing loss as between mild to moderate and dont wear them all he time.

Not wearing the hearing aids is detrimental to learning how to hear with them. Hearing aids are not eye glasses.

As Raudrive says, wear them all the time! Your ears need to learn how to maximize the benefits!!

LawyerFL Jacksonville, fl

Hearing aids only have a 3 to 6 foot range. So you need an (Assistive Listening System) to hear clearly in large spaces like auditoriums and churches. If you have hearing aids with in them, then ask your hearing professional to turn on that feature and show you how to use it. Then look for signs showing an ear. It may also say Loops or have a capital T ( for telecoil).

As said above Loops and systems are the most common listening systems. You can usually check them out at reception or security. With your telecoil enabled you can just sit down and turn on you Telecoil program. With FM you need to check out a radio, and a neckloop which connects to your HA telecoils. If you don’t have telecoils, then you will be given a headset to plug into the radio. Good Listening!

Here’s an older, but good, short video @ how work. Juliette Sterkens is the lead voice on loops and how to benefit.

paul.cleary.nz

I do believe the original poster said that their hearing aids sounded to them like “they were listening in an auditorium”.
My interpretation is that they were not in an actual physical auditorium but attempting to describe how their hearing aids sounded to them in normal everyday use.
@wbckr2007 Please advise if my interpretation is correct?

If I am correct, then their hearing aids appeared to be poorly adapted for fit.

wbckr2007Author

no. i was in an auditorium with the speaker mikedup. It also happens in a church.

Speedskater

Cleveland Ohio USA

If you repeating go to the same auditorium or church, there may be ways to reduce the problem.
But other venues may have other challenges.

LawyerFL Jacksonville, fl

If you go to a church, or other large location on a frequent basis, and you’ve checked to find out they do not have any , ask them if they have an ALS (assistive listening system). It would not be unusual for the minister/staff to not know what this is. So you need educational materials to give them. Look on www.hearingloss.com14 for information to share. That site also has information called Getting in the Loop for how to advocate for looping your church. The backup plan would be to ask them to implement an listening system which is much less expensive.
Good luck!

philbob57

Have you tried the Hear in Noise or Outdoor programs? The Hear in Noise program is a big help to me in small auditoriums; sometimes the Outdoor program helps.

I find both these programs have a big positive effect on what’s possible, too!! As we’ve both discovered, Outdoor works quite well in lots of situations that are not “outdoors”! Especially large spaces, like big stores.

cvkemp

Hot Springs Village, Arkansas

In reply to @LawyerFL

I am not sure where you get the 3 to six foot range. I have had better luck in a lecture hall at about 20 feet from the speaker. I have worn Oticon aids for 14 years and have a severe hearing loss. I have found that my default general program to be my best program for my needs. Also at church with my INTENT1 aids and the general program I hear better than with the t-coil program. At church i am setting about 20 feet from the pastor and 30 feet from the choir director. And about 50 feet from the choir. Yes it is a large church. I hear better at a little distance like that than right up close.

LawyerFL Jacksonville, fl

At the HLAA Convention last week. , it was mentioned a few times that hearing aids were best at conversational distances such as 3 to six, maybe 10 feet, depending on your hearing. This was always in the context of why hearing aids were not enough and was needed. Of course the problems with large spaces such as reverberation and echo were also mentioned.

Jul 5, 2024

Thanks for mentioning reverberation–one of the major problems with hearing in an auditorium. I ran onto this useful diagram recently–which I’ll post. Our ears are bombarded with every one of these lines of sound where they get all mixed up in our cochleae. No wonder hearing in a big space is so difficult!

Q-15-Image-Showing-Reverberation-3726065403